Rita

I love this website for trip planning! We will be in Germany in May and are trying to cram as much in our 12 days as possible -- most of our time will be spent in Southern Germany. What, in your opinion is overrated and worth skipping? Thanks!

Rex

Almost nothing. Lindau?<BR><BR>Only good advice I can give is fly into "xx" airport (Munich?) and don't go outside a 100 mile circle. You still will barely scratch the surface inside that.<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>

amy

Southern Germany is great, but I would stick to the eastern area and skip the black forest. Munich is fun, and the castle country is definately worthy.

Gary St

As far as our family,forget Rothenberg check out Dinkelsbuhl instead, Rothenburg is to touristy. Neuschwanstein is pretty but there again it is touristy and you will spend 1/2 a day there waiting in line and going through the castle. If you are renting a car take the back roads instead of the Autobahn and take a real look at the small towns.<BR> Play it by ear and you will have the time of your life!!<BR>Gary<BR>You can see pics of our recent adventure at www.wendellsbait.com/germany.html

bettyk

The thing about Rothenburg is it is on the tour bus circuit so from about 10 AM to 2 or 3 PM it is pretty crowded with tourists. BUT if you stay overnight, you get to experience the real Rothenburg which I find charming. Dinkelsbuhl is also a good choice but don't rule out Rothenburg entirely.

up

up<BR><BR>into the German Alps if you can<BR><BR>don't skip them.<BR>

picky

Now there's a phrase you don't hear often. "worth skipping". Surely this is an oxymoron?

xx

second the go to rothenburg and spend the night. yeah, it's touristy, but in may it shouldnt be too bad. i was there in mid-may two years ago and the crowds werent at all bad in the daytime and the town was empty at night.<BR><BR>bertchesgaden, garmisch, linderhof and a detour to salzburg are all well worth NOT skipping.<BR>with Neuschwanstein, go early in the morning or late evening and the crowd and the wait arent bad. the hike up to the bridge is good, and the one around the base of the castle along the river and through the gorge is a lot of fun.

Rita

(Mr/Ms Picky: is "worth skipping" a sentence? See -- I can be picky too!) I'm honestly seeking information for our upcoming trip, but instead I get a rude comment. Holy Moly -- what's the deal here? To the other folks and their sincere answers, thanks!!

Tom

Have been to Germany numerous times and am most familar with the area South of Frankfurt. I would rate the following as "do not miss":<BR><BR>1. Munich<BR>2. The Mosel River Valley from Koblenz to Trier<BR>3. Rothenberg Ob der Tauber<BR>4. Heidelburg<BR>5. The Rhine from Cologne to Frankfurt<BR>6. Dachau<BR>7. Nueschwanstein<BR>8. Garmisch-Partenkirchen<BR>9. Burg Eltz<BR>10.Englisher Gartens<BR><BR>I woudl be sure to skip"<BR><BR>1. Frankfurt<BR>2. Berchtesgaden<BR>3. Black Forest<BR>

Picky

Nope, it's a phrase.<BR>

xxx

Holy Moley, with an "e."

Bob

As someone who has lived in Germany and goes there often I disagree with Gary on his Dinkelsbuhl v Rothenburg comments. <BR><BR>I have been to Dink many times and can never discover the attraction. It is sort of boring. On the other hand we stay in Rothenburg and enjoy the town, tourists and all, especially in the evening. Stay there for the night and you will agree. Plus there is a reason the busses stop there and not Dink.<BR><BR>The comment about not moving all the time is great too. We see too many people on tours over there that move every night and waste all their time packing and unpacking in new hotels. You can fly to one airport and stay in one town about 3 nights each and have a great trip and really enjoy the area. Don't spend all your time in the car. They have traffic there also just like we do.<BR><BR>Berchtesgaden is also great. The poster that said to skip is incorrect. You have the Salt mines, Eagles Nest, Lake Koingsee electric boats and day trips to Salzburg in beautiful scenery. Plus the Alpine road drive from there to Garmisch is beautiful through Ramsau and Reit im Winkl.<BR><BR>May will also be cool in that area. Plan for sweaters and rain gear. It always rains some in Germany.<BR><BR>Skip? Frankfurt, the town probably.

honey

I don't care much about Berchtesgaden, but I absolutely love the Konigssee which is very near. It's beautiful, to say the least.

brownie

I second Dachau for a bit of education.<BR><BR>Plus it's a case of "lest we forget".<BR><BR>Other than that .. plenty of castle in the south. Maybe at least one river trip Rhine/Mosel. I think add Munich into that equation and you'll be busy enough. <BR><BR>

Harzer

How can anyone suggest you skip the superb scenery of the Black Forest!!??<BR><BR>and go to Disneyland Neuschwanstein instead??!!<BR><BR>I agree with Rex only more so. Go to the places most other people skip. There is enough in a radius of 25 miles of any given town in most parts of Germany to occupy you for 12 days.<BR>Harzer

Russ

Just back from a 3-week trip that included about 17 days in Germany. With 12 days, I think it's good to be cautious about moving around too much, but you should try to explore at least a couple of different regions if you can. I'd suggest spending at least 4 days in another area besides Bavaria as well - The Rhine/Mosel River region northwest of Frankfurt provides a different experience from the one you'll have in Bavaria in terms of history, culture and scenery. Cologne and Trier are terrific cities to visit, and the smaller cities and towns, such as Cochem, Beilstein, and Bernkastel on the Mosel, or Linz,<BR>Oberwesel, Bacharach, or Boppard on the Rhine, are all charming spots where you can visit wineries, ride bikes along the river, tour castles (Burg Eltz near Moselkern on the Mosel is TOPS) or catch a "Rhine-in-Flames" fireworks show.<BR><BR>Overrated? Rothenburg. Kitschy and touristy. Staying the night there (some kind of Rick Steves voodoo nonsense that's supposed transform Rothenburg from tourist trap into a real town) helps you avoid the tourist hordes, but you're still there with the K&auml;the<BR>Wohlfahrt shops, the German shopkeepers and restaurateurs who speak English 90% of the day, and about 10,000,000 cuckoo clocks. It's not really Hell, it's just a lot more like Disneyland than a real German town. I also agree that Neuschwanstein's tour (not to mention its minor importance as an historical site) is way overrated, but the setting is so spectacular, you should at least drive by for a view if you're in the area. I think Munich is somewhat overrated too. If you get out and see some of the rest of Bavaria first, you'll want to spend less time in Munich.